Kitchen range with switch-position indicator



1963 H. DETTERBECK ETAL ;8

KITCHEN RANGE WITH SWITCH-POSITION INDICATOR Filed Jan. 15, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig.2

3,114,824 xncmzumncr: WITH SWITCH-POSITION INDICATOR Filed Jan. 15, 1962 Dec. 17, 1963 H. DETTERBECK ETAL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 3,114,824 KITCHEN RANGE WHTH SWITCH PUSlTiON INDMJATGR Heinrich Detterheclr and Richard Ran, Traunrent, Germany, assignors to SiemensEiectrogeriite Aktiengesellschaft, Munich, Germany, a corporation of Germany Filed Jan. 15, 1962., Ser. No. 166,331 8 Claims. (Cl. 21937) Our invention relates to electric ranges with switchposition indicators.

To afford recognizing and supervising at a glance the operating condition of an electric range, the actuating knobs for the switching and control members of the range, usually grouped together for actuation from the front of the range, are generally provided with means for indicating the respective switch positions by optical symbols or the like easily understandable indicia. There are known switch-position indications of this type in which the indicia-carrying members connected with the actuating knobs are so arranged that the indicia appear in observation windows at the front of the range. Since electric ranges, as a rule, are not much higher than ordinary tables, the indicator areas and the actuating knobs, in order to be properly observed, require special attention if one stands close to the range. For better and more convenient visibility, therefore, the actuating knobs together with the switch-position indicating means have been given an inclined mounting on the range structure. This, however, has the disadvantage that the switches connected with the actuating knobs must be mounted directly behind a sloping front wall of the range housing which is an unfavorable location temperature-wise, or that a complicated linkage must be provided for connecting the slopingly mounted knobs with the switches or temperature control devices located in the thermally favorable rear zone of the range. These advantages are avoided by a likewise known design of a range whose actuating knobs are fastened on respective shafts extending perpendicularly to the front wall of the range and whose position-indicating areas are located at the front edge of a trough-like indentation in the top surface of the range. This design is synoptically favorable but involves the diflicnlty that the indicator areas must be well sealed against the ingress of food or liquids boiling over, that the design of the trough in the range top, serving also as a catch basin for spilled food, is a diflicult matter because it must also permit being turned upwardly for repair or inspection purposes. Furthermore, this design involves the danger that the transparent covering of the indicator areas or windows may become scratched or damaged by inadvertent impact of pots and pans.

It is an object of our invention, therefore, to devise a particularly well visible switch-position indication for electric ranges whose indicating areas or windows are protected from ingress of food as well as from damage, thus combining the advantages of the above-mentioned known devices while avoiding their deficiencies.

To this end, and in accordance with a feature of our invention, the indicating areas of the switch-position indicator are arranged in a horizontal groove indented in the vertical front of the range and are located in the lower side wall of the groove extending substantially perpendicularly to the viewing direction of a person standing in front of the range, whereas the upper side wall of the groove extends substantially parallel to that viewing direction and thus shields the indicating areas or windows toward the range top surface.

According to another, preferred feature of the invention, the portion of the range front wall located above the indentation is rearwardly offset from the lower porhce tion approximately up to the forward edges of the indicator areas.

The above-mentioned and more specific features of our invention, as well as the above-mentioned and further advantages atforded thereby, will be apparent from the fol lowing description of the embodiment illustrated by way of example on the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an electric kitchen range with switch-position indicator means according to the invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross section along the line 11-11 in FIG. 1 through part of the range housing, the top portion of the range being removed.

FIG. 3 shows an illuminating device of the switch-position indicator means.

The sheet-metal housing 1 of the illustrated range is closed toward the front by a front wall 16. The range top 17 is shown provided with three burners or heater plates 2, 3, and 4, and the range also comprises a baking oven in its lower portion, the oven being accessible 'hrough a door 18. The three burners and the oven are electrically operated by respective control switches of which one, denoted by 2i), is visible in FIG. 2. Each control switch has a shaft 34 extending horizontally from the rear of the range through the front wall. Each shaft carries an actuating knob 5, 6, '7 or 8 on the exterior side of the front wall. Located above the horizontal row of knobs 5 to S is an indentation 9 shaped as a horizontally elongated groove of angular cross-sectional contour whose sloping lower flank or side wall 14 extends approximately at a right angle to the viewing direction of a person using the range or standing close to the range front. The lower side wall 14 of the indented groove is provided with viewing areas or windows it), 11, i2 and 113. Mounted behind these windows are respective indicator drums 21 which are concentrically fastened to the respective actuating shafts 34 (FIG. 2) and which carry along their periphery the indicia denoting the selected switching positions. The upper flank or side wall 15 of the indentation 19 slopes approximately in the viewing direction of a person standing in front of the range and shields or shadows the flank wall 14 at least partially from above so that the lower flank wall 14 of the indentation is protected to a great extent from impacts and from ingress of food running over. That is, the angle formed between the two flank walls 14, 15 of the indented groove 9 is approximately and the angle between the lower flank wall 14 and the vertical plane of the range front is between 50 and 70, preferably about 60 as shown. This not only facilitates viewing the switch-position indications but iso greatly prevents dust from accumulating on the downwardly sloping groove wall 14.

The indentation 9 extends over the entire distance occupied by the totality of actuating knobs 5 to 8 horizontally along the range front wall 16. However, instead of a single indentation, two or more individual indentations may be provided beside each other. The flank wall 14 may consist of opaque material. In this case the viewing areas 10 to 13, or rather the indicia visible through the viewing areas, are illuminated by a light: source 19 mounted in the interior of the range and operative when the range is being used electrically by placing any one of the switches into an active position. The flank wall 14 may also consist of a translucent material which has transparent areas at the location of the indicator windows 10 to 13. If the flank wall 14 is made of transparent material, an opaque diaphragm 23 (FIG. 2) with openings to form the indicator windows it) to 13 may be provided within the range beneath the flank wall 14. The space between diaphragm 2'3 and flank wall 14 is preferably shielded from the interior of the range by means of a transparent pane 24. The flank wall 15 of the indented groove may aliases also consist of translucent material to pass light from source 19 onto the flank wall 14-.

The indentation 9 may be covered toward the outside by a pane of transparent material to prevent accumulation of dust. The pane may extend parallel to the front wall 16 of the range or, to prevent reflection, may be slightly inclined.

The light source 19, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, comprises a reflector 25 extending over the width of the range or the indentation. The reflector is provided with an incandescent bulb 26 held in a socket 27 at the rear of the reflector 25. The curved reflector surface 28 distributes the light uniformly over the entire width of the indentation 9. Venting slits 32 in the upper portion 29 of the reflector 25 serve to promote dissipating heat. If desired, further venting slits 32. may be provided in the lower portion 3% of the reflector 25. A shielding sheet or cover 33 is mounted in the interior of the reflector to prevent direct passage of light from the bulb to the indentation 9. While the light source just described is particularly favorable for illuminating the narrow, elongated indentation of the range-switch indicator, other designs and types of light sources are also applicable. For example, the light source may consist of a so-called illuminating or luminescent capacitor or electroluminescent sheet arranged in the flank walls 14 or 15.

It is preferable to have the upper portion 16' of the range front wall above the indentation 9 slope rearwardly and upwardly from the vertical plane of the lower and main portion of the front wall 16 (FIG. 2), so that the top edge of the front wall extends approximately vertically above the forward edges of the viewing areas or Windows to 13.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art, upon a study of this disclosure, that with respect to structural details, individual components, and arrangement of such components, our invention permits of various modifications and hence can be given embodiments other than particularly illustrated and described herein, without departing from the essential features of our invention, and within the scope of the claims annexed hereto.

We claim:

1. In an electric range having a housing with a range top and a range front, electric range-control switches in said housing, and a group of manual actuating knobs rotatably mounted on said range front at the external side thereof and mechanically connected with said respective switches, the combination of a switch-position indicator comprising indicator members connected in said housing with said respective switches and having each a series of indicia denoting respectively different switch positions; an indentation in said range front, said indentation having a lower flank wall and an upper flank wall extending in respective sloping directions relative to the range front, said lower flank wall having viewing areas behind which said respective members are located so as to exhibit one of their respective indicia through each area, said lower flank wall being approximately perpendicular to the viewing direction of a person standing in front of the range in reaching distance from said knobs, and said upper flank Wall extending approximately parallel to said direction and thereby shielding said viewing areas from the range top; said indicator defining openings below said indentations for receiving the actuating knobs.

2. In a range having a switch-position indicator according to claim 1, said two flank walls of said indentation in the range front forming with each other an angle of approximately 90, and said lower flank wall forming an angle between about and about with the vertical range front.

3. In a range having a switch-position indicator according to claim 1, said range front wall having above said indentation a wall portion sloping upwardly and rearwardly back to above the location of the forward edges of said viewing areas.

4. A range with a switch-position indicator according to claim 1, comprising a light source mounted in said housing for illuminating said lower flank wall through said upper flank wall of said indentation.

5. in a range having a switch-position indicator according to claim 1, said lower flank wall of said indentation being transparent in said viewing areas and being otherwise translucent, and a light source mounted in said housing for illuminating said lower flank Wall.

6. In a range having a switch-position indicator according to claim 1, said lower flank wall of said indentation being transparent, an opaque diaphragm member extending beneath said lower flank wall and having openings to form said respective viewing areas, and a light source mounted in said range housing for illuminating said areas.

7. In a range having a switch-position indicator according to claim 1, said indicator members comprising respective drums coaxially joined with said knobs and having each a peripheral surface provided with said series of indicia.

8. A range with an indicator according to claim 1, comprising a reflector mounted in said housing and having a reflector opening extending horizontally along the totality of said viewing areas, and a light source mounted centrally in said reflector for illuminating said areas and the indicia appearing therein; the lower flank wall including a transparent cover plate illuminated by said light source and forming a means for viewing the portions of the indicator members.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

1. IN AN ELECTRIC RANGE HAVING A HOUSING WITH A RANGE TOP AND A RANGE FRONT, ELECTRIC RANGE-CONTROL SWITCHES IN SAID HOUSING, AND A GROUP OF MANUAL ACTUATING KNOBS ROTATABLY MOUNTED ON SAID RANGE FRONT AT THE EXTERNAL SIDE THEREOF AND MECHANICALLY CONNECTED WITH SAID RESPECTIVE SWITCHES, THE COMBINATION, OF A SWITCH-POSITION INDICATOR COMPRISING INDICATOR MEMBERS CONNECTED IN SAID HOUSING WITH SAID RESPECTIVE SWITCHES AND HAVING EACH A SERIES OF INDICIA DENOTING RESPECTIVELY DIFFERENT SWITCH POSITIONS; AN INDENTATION IN SAID RANGE FRONT, SAID INDENTATION HAVING A LOWER FLANK WALL AND AN UPPER FLANK WALL EXTENDING IN RESPECTIVE SLOPING DIRECTIONS RELATIVE TO THE RANGE FRONT, SAID LOWER FLANK WALL HAVING VIEWING AREAS BEHIND WHICH SAID RESPECTIVE MEMBERS ARE LOCATED SO AS TO EXHIBIT ONE OF THEIR RESPECTIVE INDICIA THROUGH EACH AREA, SAID LOWER FLANK WALL BEING APPROXIMATELY PERPENDICULAR TO THE VIEWING DIRECTION OF A PERSON STANDING IN FRONT OF THE RANGE IN REACHING DISTANCE FROM SAID KNOBS, AND SAID UPPER FLANK WALL EXTENDING APPROXIMATELY PARALLEL TO SAID DIRECTION AND THEREBY SHIELDING SAID VIEWING AREAS FROM THE RANGE TOP; SAID INDICATOR DEFINING OPENINGS BELOW SAID INDENTATIONS FOR RECEIVING THE ACTUATING KNOBS. 